Jammu and Kashmir police on Wednesday used loudhailers and posters to warn people against associating with Mirwaiz Umar Farooq’s Awami Action Committee (AAC) and Masroor Abbas Ansari’s Jammu and Kashmir Ittihadul Muslimeen (JKIM), mounting pressure on the separatist leaders despite their conciliatory gestures.

The announcements have added to tension across Kashmir over a possible India-Pakistan confrontation after the Pahalgam terror attack. Panic has gripped border residents amid ceasefire violations by Pakistan and retaliatory firing by India for the last six days.

Police vehicles fitted with loudhailers were seen making announcements at multiple places in Srinagar asking residents to stay away from the two banned organisations and warning people with links to the groups of severe consequences.

The move is seen as a preemptive attempt to prevent a separatist resurgence in the aftermath of the April 22 terror attack.

The Centre banned the ACC and the JKIM, which were key constituents of the moderate Hurriyat faction, early last month for five years under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA), citing threats to national security and sovereignty.

The ACC and the JKIM enjoy strong support among the Sunni and Shia populations, respectively. The Mirwaiz and Ansari are religious figures.

Separatists as well as pro-India groups had condemned the ban.

After the Pahalgam terror attack, the Mirwaiz had taken the lead and given a call for a Valley-wide shutdown. Other groups had supported the call, resulting in the first major shutdown against militant action in decades.

Srinagar’s Jamia Masjid, where the Mirwaiz delivers weekly Friday sermons, also observed a one-minute silence to mourn the deaths of 25 tourists and a local.

The two groups did not react to the police’s warning till late in the afternoon, apparently out of fear of being hounded.

The ban on these groups was followed by Union home minister Amit Shah’s controversial claim that separatism had become a thing of the past in Kashmir. Shah’s claim was prompted by announcements by several little-known separatist groups to renounce the ideology and join the mainstream.